City: Nude pics raised red flags

Peoria is defending its investigation of a couple who temporarily lost custody of their daughters after taking nude photographs of the girls.

Lisa and Anthony "A.J." Demaree are now suing Walmart, the city and the state over the incident, which began when a Walmart photo clerk found eight photos with nude images of the children among a group of 144 family photographs dropped off for developing.

Peoria police were called, and, after viewing the photos, launched an investigation.

"The fact is: When we are contacted about children who may be at risk, we investigate," said a statement issued Friday by the city. "This is what we should do."

The parents' three young daughters were taken from their home for more than a month while the state investigated the couple for possible child sexual exploitation.

The Demarees, who held a news conference on Friday, insist that the photographs were simply innocent bath- and playtime snapshots of the girls, who ranged in age from 1 1/2 to 5. A judge agreed with their description, and the couple regained legal custody of their kids in May.

A redacted copy of a Peoria police report released Friday describes the images in graphic detail.

The 57-page incident report describes the Walmart photos and about 20 others taken during a police search of the Demarees' home.

According to one of the investigating officers, "The photographs depicted three young girls in various states of nudity, and several of the pictures depicted close-up views of the girls' genitalia."

The report also quoted the Walmart photo clerk as saying the photos went beyond what she considered "normal" child bath-time photography.

The police report, which was distributed to media outlets, was released with a statement from City Attorney Steven Kemp defending the Peoria police.

"The city stands behind the appropriate actions of our officers," Kemp said. "The city will vigorously defend against these accusations."

Richard Treon, the Demarees' attorney, challenged the police officers' evaluation of the photos, saying, "that's in the eye of the beholder."

He referenced the ruling from Superior Court Judge J. Richard Gama that sided with the Demarees.

During the news conference Friday, the Demarees lashed out at state Child Protective Services investigators, who they said ripped their crying and screaming children out of their arms.

"It was awful," recalled a tearful Lisa Demaree. "I couldn't tell them where they were going."

Neither parent was charged with a crime. The Demarees are suing over the economic and emotional damage they say the incident caused.

In a lawsuit that also named the state Attorney General's Office as a defendant, the Demarees claim that employees from each party defamed them by telling friends, family members and co-workers that they had "sexually abused" their children by taking pornographic pictures of them.

The Attorney General's Office and the state Department of Economic Security, which oversees Child Protective Services, have yet to comment on the suit.

Treon said the couple spent more than $75,000 fighting the state to regain custody and Lisa Demaree could not work as an educator in the Peoria Unified School District for a year while the investigation was being conducted.

In a separate suit, the Demarees claim Walmart is also at fault for not divulging that it had an "unsuitable print policy" and could decide to turn any photos over to law enforcement. The lawsuit claims Walmart committed consumer fraud.

A spokeswoman for Walmart released a brief statement Friday, saying, "These are sensitive allegations, and we're taking them very seriously."